Hi Keegan,
1) Are you talking about using the app and editing multiple rules or too many rules getting triggered at the same time? Smart Actions app does use the battery optimally and efficiently like any other application on the phone. However it does have the added benefit of high customizability, which user can configure, to improve or extend the battery life of the phone.

2) If the user has manually disabled the actions from the settings, then rule is not required. However Smart Actions can help or used to set the conditions properly so that automatically the rule can be triggered at the appropriate time to save battery instead of manually changing the settings.

3)Background data: The process of syncing the data in the background by Android applications. For example, Yahoo or Gmail applications sync in the background and notify the user when new email is delivered. By disabling the background data settings, the background apps such as Email, MMS etc., will not update until the application is explicitly invoked by the user.
If you are using only apps such as radio, text message, internet and send/receive calls, then background data is not used.

Useful Searches

About DroidForums.net

DroidForums.net was founded in 2009 originally dedicated for the Motorola Droid, the first Verizon Android Phone. We have since expanded our community to cover all Android Phones, Android Tablets, and Android Wearables. We discuss various topics including Android Help, Android Device Reviews, Android Apps, Phone Accessories, Android Games and more. Our ultimate goal is to be the Internet's best and largest Android Forum.